Electronic watches having chronograph performance are known. However, with such watches of the conventional type there is the inconvenience that the display portion of the watch has to be watched in order to ascertain a predetermined lapse of time. For example in the starting of a sail boat race a contestant must watch his watch to determine the lapse of time from a warning whistle or bell in order to know when the starting gun will be fired. This is inconvenient since he needs to devote his entire attention to maneuvering his boat.